Spring Showcase Recap Shows Progress and Work to be Done

The Sun Devils are now done with spring practice. Here's how they capped the night at their spring showcase.

Author:
Donnie Druin
Publish date:
Apr 10, 2022 5:10 PM EDT

TEMPE -- And just like that, spring football is over for Arizona State.

Fifteen practices have come and gone for the Sun Devils, as the team wrapped up their spring session in front of fans under the lights of Sun Devil Stadium on Saturday.

For ASU faithful, this was the first and only glimpse of the early stages of Arizona State's 2022 squad. The Sun Devils will now be relegated to the weight room until the summer when preseason camp gets underway.

The practice session lasted for just over 90 minutes, which began with their typical stretching period before transitioning into individual position drills.

Arizona State had stars such as Chase Lucas, Darien Butler, Frank Darby, Chad Johnson (whose son plays for ASU), Tyler Johnson, Eno Benjamin, Rachaad White and D.J. Davidson among others in attendance.

Seven-on-seven drills then followed, with quarterback Trenton Bourguet initially leading the first-team position players.

After a few passes, the offensive and defensive lines joined in on the fun. The three typical starters throughout spring practice (left guard LaDarius Henderson, center Ben Scott and right tackle Des Holmes) were on the field, yet two late risers in left tackle Emmitt Bohle and right guard Spencer Lovell started for ASU.

Left tackle Isaia Glass and right guard Chris Martinez, who earlier in the spring were mixed in with the starters, played with the second-team line Saturday night.

The offensive line struggled to play cleanly throughout the night, as more than a handful of flags were thrown on the line for penalties both before and during play. This was a problem for Arizona State last season, and unfortunately, it appears the elixir still hasn't been found.

Special teams was an area the Sun Devils wanted to make strides, and the practice's first take on kickoff return didn't exactly go to plan, as D.J. Taylor fumbled the opening kickoff before Arizona State transitioned into a game-like environment. Those ball security issues saw Taylor benched towards the end of the season in 2021, and the home crowd didn't leave Sun Devil Stadium feeling any better about having him fielding kicks.

LV Bunkley-Shelton fielded punts, while kicker Jace Feely worked as Arizona State's placekicker and kickoff specialist. Feely consistently hit field goals inside 40 yards, but struggled to find the leg to convert from further out than 43 yards.

Eddie Czaplicki, who earned punting privileges as a true freshman last season, showed off his abilities when he boomed a 61-yard bomb during practice.

When the Sun Devils transitioned to game-like situations, it was again Bourguet who strutted out with the starters. However, Paul Tyson eventually found his way mixed in with the ones. Both passers dealt with issues receiving high snaps from their respective centers.

Arizona State, for all position groups, did a great job of putting players at different levels of the depth chart on the field in order to see who worked well as a unit and who communicated the best.

For the offense, the Sun Devils remained fairly vanilla, although fans were finally able to see our reports of what was featured throughout the spring: Jet sweeps, pre-snap motion and heavy doses of play-action.

Daniyel Ngata initially rolled out with the starters, but Xazavian Valladay also shared significant time in the backfield. Both are expected to heavily contribute to ASU's offense in 2022. Fellow running back Deonce Elliot also made noise towards the later parts of the practice where tackling was live, bursting through holes and picking up multiple first downs.

Due to the uncertainty at quarterback, Arizona State's defense is expected to carry the team to wins next season, and Saturday highlighted their abilities to disrupt offenses.

Through all phases, from Robby Harrison and Joe Moore to guys such as Dylan Hall and T.J. Pesefea, the defensive line found themselves disrupting plays throughout the entire night and making it difficult for the offense to gain any momentum.

In fact, only two offensive touchdowns were scored, both coming towards the final minutes of practice. After quarterback Finn Collins connected with Chad Johnson Jr. on a long pass, freshman running back Tevin White scooted in for a two-yard score. On the final play of the "scrimmage," wide receiver Coben Bourguet made an impressive 30-yard touchdown grab towards the sideline.

All eyes were on the quarterback battle, and while All Sun Devils will provide a detailed account of what each passer was able to showcase, neither Tyson or Bourguet was able to truly separate themselves in the competition. Tyson was able to show off his arm strength while Bourguet looked the more mobile of the two.

Daylin McLemore gave fans the best bang for their buck with his performance. His growth over the course of spring ball has been encouraging for the future.

Following the practice, fans were treated to a fireworks show and an autograph session with the players.

It was a great night for Sun Devil fans to head out to the stadium and get a small taste of what the 2022 Arizona State team will offer. While it's still clear ASU has work to do, there were indeed early signs that the Sun Devils can make some noise next season.

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